Shadowed Truth
by Chiara Crawford
Summary: ON HIATUS! Voldemort wants certain artifacts, Harry Potter has more secrets than some thought and people are completely different than you remember.Who is this mysterious man in the background? Action, romance and, of course, a lot of sarcasm.6th year
1. Default Chapter

_**Shadowed Truth**_

_Author's Note:_ English is not my mother tongue so be warned. I don't know where this story is leading but I just couldn't not write this. The idea kinda stuck in my head. I don't have a beta reader so bear with me on this account. Well, enough with this. On with the story.

_Disclaimer:_ Harry Potter is not mine. Everything belongs to JKR and I only do this for my enjoyment and not for any profit or money.

_Prologue_

It was dark. Tiny streams of water flowed noiselessly on the cold stone floor. The magnificent statues lining the chamber were only illuminated by the weak light on the other side of the hall, giving them an eerie appearance. An almost sacred silence would have befallen this forgotten and lost place, had the voices at the far corner of the room been silent.

"It pains me each time to see you go and to let this continue." The voice was deep and soft, obviously concerned by something.

"You know that there is nothing we can do now. If they knew what really happened, the truth, we would loose every advantage over him that we currently have. It is always the same. You are plagued by your helplessness and I by my choices to deceive those I, dare I say it, love. We cannot help it. I must return. You will be here to nurse my wounds, whatever they may be." The dark figure turned and sighed deeply. He knew that it could not be avoided and he accepted it. Suddenly a familiar warmth enfolded him and he basked in the sensation, knowing that it would be a long time before he could feel it again.

"Someday it'll be over and you'll be free to show them our secrets. Our name will be cleansed and you will be able to tell the world that you are my heir." The whispered words sent hope to his heart and his spirits soared. "Do not forget your precautions. If everything goes wrong you'll need them." The man smirked.

His companion snorted.

"Well, you know me. Trouble seems to find me. I can't help it." He groaned. "It's time."

The figure waved his hand and shrunk all of his possessions. After a last teary hug he turned, straightened and set his face into a carefully constructed depressive mask. He walked out, never looking back, determined once again that he was doing what he had to.

"May the gods protect you, my son."


	2. Chapter 1Let the games begin

_**Shadowed Truth**_

_Author's Note:_ English is not my mother tongue so be warned. I don't know where this story is going but I just couldn't not write this. The idea kinda stuck in my head. I don't have a beta reader so bear with me on this account. Well, enough with this. On with the story.

_Disclaimer:_ Harry Potter is not mine. Everything belongs to JKR and I only do this for my enjoyment and not for any profit or money.

__

Chapter 1- Let the games begin

The last day of school was always hectic. Students were running around and packing, while some were just relieved that they could finally go home. Therefore it was probably the strangest thing that the library, at this time of the year usually completely empty, wasn't abandoned. At a lonely table, in one of the farthest corners, sat one Harry James Potter, current Gryffindor and bane of Voldemort's existence. Of course, the fact that the resident know-it-all and best friend of Harry Potter Hermione Granger was not there, hovering over him, was something that would make everyone curious.

Yes, it was very unusual to see Harry so interested in a book or so serious. It was a big book and most likely not used often. The dust on the cover showed that quite clearly.

Nevertheless, the young Gryffindor was reading it with uttermost care and muttering from time to time while waving his wand.

_Arcane Artifacts- How to find them and not get yourself killed _was written on the cover in bold, golden letters.

A sudden smile lit up his face as he closed the book. With his black robes billowing behind him, he strode out of the library. In his haste to leave, he didn't notice the shadow lurking behind the bookshelves.

* * *

"But Albus…" Minerva McGonagall was a formidable woman. She had always been independent and stubborn, which was one of the reasons why the sorting hat had placed her into Gryffindor. Many men had covered before her, students and adults alike were hesitant to cross her, if they ever dared, but one man had always been able to convince her: Albus Dumbledore. She cursed again, angry at herself that he had been able to do it again. No matter what she did, he always won in the end.

"You know, my dear, that I only want the best for you. You are not in the condition to go on active missions like these." Albus said calmly but firmly. His hands settled on her shoulders, his eyes meeting hers. "Do not argue with me, Minerva. We've already been through this and before you say anything else, I have another very important mission for you."

Minerva raised her eyebrows. This, she hadn't expected.

"I'm worried about Harry. You know how he's been lately and it concerns me. I know that his life at the Dursley's is not all sunshine and roses and that they treat him not how relatives should treat their kin." His face reflected the guilt he felt. He probably wouldn't forgive himself for doing this to the poor boy but it was necessary to preserve the wards. "Although Alastor and the rest of the order are threatening Harry's family at the moment, I will not take the risk of him being mistreated. Harry's already in a delicate condition because of Sirius' death. I will not repeat such a mistake again."

Minerva's face softened. She knew how much grief it cost Albus to leave Harry with them. Every single year he blamed himself, sometimes going even as far as crying himself to sleep in her arms. She hugged him without the slightest hesitation.

"So, I guess you're asking me to look after him in cat form?" She smiled as Albus nodded. Yes, it would be a good thing.

"You're as always too perceptive, my dear. Yes, that's what I want you to do. I know that he needs some time to deal with his emotions and I do not think he'd want to have someone following him. As a cat, your presence wouldn't be too oppressive. Here, wear this amulet. It will mask your magical signature and hide you from detectors, as well as magical sense. It is automatically a portkey to Hogwarts, as well as a recording and communicative device. You should be safe and if something happens, alert the rest of the order at once. Your health is very important to me and the rest of us, so don't overdo it." His voice turned stern but the usual twinkle returned to his eyes.

Together they walked out of his office, the calming song of Fawkes drifting around them and giving them new hope.

* * *

"Crucio!" His nerves were burning and his body screaming. In his mind, he cursed repeatedly the day he took the dark mark. Severus Snape wasn't a very nice person. Well, not to many people anyway and no one could deny the fact that he favored Slytherins, although few knew that most of his favoritism and greasy git attitude was only a façade to help him spy. But one thing that those who knew him could say with absolute certainty was that he had always been and would always be loyal to the end and too stubborn for his own good. It was remarkable that he spied on the evilest Dark Lord in existence and it was even more remarkable that he succeeded.

Voldemort cancelled the spell. Apparently, he was not yet willing to make his potion master insane.

"Next time you should bring me better results, Sssseverus. It is obvious that the old fool has been giving Potter occlumency lessons and you didn't inform me of that. I can't enter his mind anymore. You are worthless to me if you do not bring me valuable information." He whispered menacingly.

"Yes, my lord. I will not disappoint you." Severus' voice was steady, even though he was barely able to stand. He stepped back into the inner circle.

"Luciusss!" The shout resonated in the dark throne room, while the shadows danced as the flames on the candles moved.

The blond man glided forward and dropped to one knee, bowing to the snakelike creature in front of him. Voldemort petted the hissing Nagini, who slithered to his side.

"Have you made any progress?" He was, obviously, very interested in this information and Severus filed that for later consideration.

"Yes, master. I have found some of the artifacts on the black wizard market. It shouldn't be a problem to buy them, as most of the sellers are eager to help you in achieving your goal. But there seems to be another party that is interested in these artifacts. I do not yet know who that is but I will find out."

The Dark Lord looked to be in deep thought but no one dared to break the silence.

"How… interesting. Find out who wants them and why. Do not kill them, …yet. They may be of use to me." With a wave of his hand he dismissed the death eaters who left as fast as was humanly possible.

_This was very informative._ He decided that Albus had to know. Whatever these artifacts were, if Voldemort wanted them then nothing good could come out of it. With a silent pop he apparated away.

* * *

Harry shivered. Even though the threat of Moody seemed to be working for now, he was not sure how long his luck would hold. The Dursley's were, unfortunately, a family that, while believing in everything normal, had no idea what rational thought meant. Not in the long run, at least. While the fear towards his friends out weighted Vernon's hate for him for now, no one could predict what would happen tomorrow. Harry shivered again as he remembered the endless beatings and abuse he received at the hands of his so called relatives. It never had been easy to escape the Dursley's but somehow he always managed to stay as far away as possible from them. He loved to run in the middle of the night and no one had discovered his secrets or his passion for this thrill. After he entered the wizarding world everything seemed to have gotten a lot more complicated, but he still somehow managed to escape on some nights.

He sighed as he realized that he wouldn't have that much time now that he had a task to do. The tense silence in the car continued to hold and he wished as he had done many times before to be at Hogwarts.

_Fate doesn't like me._

He didn't know how right he was.

* * *

Number twelve, Grimmauld Place was as uninviting as always. The décor was done in dark colors and gave the whole place a depressive and friendless atmophere. The portrait of Mrs. Black still hung in the entrance hall and from time to time one could hear her screaming obscenities at the visitors. It was in these halls that the Order of the Phoenix met and had their headquarters. Old and young, human and non-human, everyone here was fighting the evil known as Voldemort. The Order was an organization that had been founded during the 1920's when the world was under threat by Grindelwald. Since that moment the Order rose time after time to fight against the evil machinations of wizards who wanted to harm the people. Many heroic deeds had been committed in the name of the Order and many of them had been kept secret, never seeing the daylight. Their leader had always been secretive about certain things, so it was not really surprising that only few knew about the prophecy or its contents. Therefore the order members were only aware that Harry Potter was crucial to the war effort but not why.

The meeting room of the Order of the Phoenix was decorated in pleasant gold and blue tones. The statue of a golden phoenix was standing at the far wall of the room and the big mahogany table had beautiful engravings of fallen comrades and their deeds.

The inner circle or circum fides, as it was known by most, sat at the table, each member one of the most trusted by Albus Dumbledore. Dumbledore stood up and smiled, his eyes twinkling madly.

"Good afternoon, my friends. I hope you are all well?" He received nods from almost everyone. "Good, good. Then let's begin. Severus, have you some news?"

His twinkle dimmed. Like with the situation with Harry, he couldn't change anything about Severus' position but he couldn't help but blame himself for placing him into this mortal peril. Severus Snape was one of his closest friends, someone he considered to be the son he never had. The potion's master nodded.

"The Dark Lord was, as always, not in a happy mood." Some people flinched, but Snape ignored them and went on. "He is displeased with his inability to enter Potter's mind and the fact that I didn't inform him about this situation." He wanted to continue but was interrupted by Lupin.

"I thought the occlumency lessons were cancelled? So how is it possible that he can't enter his mind? You said that Harry was completely incompetent when it comes to occlumency." Lupin shot him a glare as a murmured And everything else. reached his ears.

"That's what I said and what I will continue to say. Potter is utterly incompetent in regards to occlumency. I don't know how the brat managed that. Probably another one of his irrational and dangerous plans. Just like his father." He sneered.

The tension thickened as the werewolf and the potion's master shot glares at each other. Everything would have escalated if Dumbledore had not stepped between the murderous rivals.

"Now, now, gentlemen. There is no need for this. We are all friends." The headmaster turned to Snape. "So you say that he cannot enter Harry's mind anymore?" The spy nodded.

"Yes, he was quite furious. He spoke to Lucius. It seems that he's after some artifacts. Lucius apparently knows where some of them are but there is another buyer. I do not know if he's fighting for our cause but this is not a coincidence." It worried him greatly that there was something so important that there was a need to have Lucius, his right hand, buy these artifacts. "It must be important."

Dumbledore nodded before turning to Mundungus. His clothes were dirty and one could mistake him for a street rat if one did not know who he really was.

"Look around and see if there are artifacts that might be particularly interesting for someone like Voldemort."

"No problem, boss." He gave Dumbledore a grin.

"Does anyone else have something to say?"

There was a moment of hesitation but Molly Weasley spoke nonetheless. Everyone knew that she loved her children and considered Harry one of her own, so there was no real surprise when she voiced her concerns.

"Albus, do you think it is wise to let Harry stay alone at the Dursley's. You know how they treat him! And after everything that has happened with Sirius he must be very depressed. It is not good for him to stay with these… monsters!" Her voice was getting louder and at the end of her speech she was shrieking. Poor Arthur Weasley was trying to get her to calm down but nothing seemed to help the hysterical woman.

"You know that there is a good reason for his stay at Privet Drive." He held up a hand before she could begin to speak again. "I will remove him from there as soon as possible and do not worry about him being safe. I've placed a very good guard on him." She was still looking like she wanted to protest but did not speak again.

"Good. Now that everything is done we should head to dinner. You know what to do. Fighting against dark forces is better done with a full stomach." His eyes twinkled even as almost all of the inner circle rolled their eyes. It was always the same.

* * *

He was flying, jumping and twisting in the air, feeling the freedom to be himself. The wind blew in his face as he made a somersault, his hair shining in the moonlight and a happy if somewhat dangerous smirk on his face. This was freedom. This was escape. With catlike elegance he continued his way towards London. Let the games begin.

__

What is dream and what reality?

_In the end it is always the people and their believe,_

_that makes reality real and through what_

_dreams remain dreams._


	3. Chapter2 The Raven Born In Darkness

_**Shadowed Truth**_

_Author's Note:_ English is not my mother tongue so be warned. I don't know where this story is going but I just couldn't not write this. The idea kinda stuck in my head. I don't have a beta reader so bear with me on this account. Well, enough with this. On with the story.

_Disclaimer:_ Harry Potter is not mine. Everything belongs to JKR and I only do this for my enjoyment and not for any profit or money.

_**Chapter 2-**_

_**The Raven Born In Darkness**_

_You think you know the person_

_Beside you_

_But do you?_

_Or is it only a mask,_

_Hiding the truth_

_In the _

_Shadows

* * *

_

Minerva MacGonagall loved her animagus form, no doubt about that. Minerva MacGonagall also loved helping and fighting for the light.

_But sometimes, _she mused,_ I wonder what I did wrong._ And tried to escape Mr. Twinkles who had found her to be a very interesting female. She sighed. These were the situations that she had to endure for the good of all.

_Trust Figg's bloody cat to find me attractive._

It had been two days since she began her guard duty and even though Arabella Figg had said that it was normal for Harry to not be seen for days, it worried her. She hadn't seen him at all and it didn't fit with the image of Harry Potter. The animagus ran on light paws to the nearest bushes of Number Four Privet Drive. The flowers in the garden and virtually everything else was disgustingly symmetric and clean. A typical, normal house with inhabitants that she loathed. She grimaced and looked around. Harry's bedroom was on the second floor, if she remembered correctly. Minerva counted herself lucky as she saw a tree that was ideal for her uses. The low branches were thick enough for her to climb but these stairs would bring her to an appropriate level from which she could see into the room, hidden by leaves and shadows. She jumped with catlike elegance on the lowest branch and continued her way to the top of the tree and settled there, seeing for the first time Harry Potter's summer residence.

The room was dark and sparsely decorated, if one could call it decorated at all. There was a desk, a chair and a bed in the room, along with a trunk. Everything was looking quite old and battered, although the trunk seemed to be in a good condition. On the desk was an open cage.

_His owl must be hunting. Good thing, Molly doesn't see this. She would go ballistic!_

The door opened and in came a tall, serious looking Harry Potter. His bangs were falling into his face, giving him an eerie appearance. She suddenly noticed that he held himself like a snake, poised to strike if there was a need to, and moved with practiced elegance. This was not the Harry Potter she knew. Harry had always been a happy looking, if somewhat closed off child with shyness and honor basically radiating from him. No, this was not the Harry Potter she knew.

_But do I really know him at all? I'm his Head of House, so I should, of course. But do I?_

The answer frightened her because she didn't. Minerva had been Gryffindor's Head of House for over fifty years and she had prided herself for the fact that she cared and knew when something troubled her young charges. But, somehow, it seemed that she had for the first time in her life as a teacher misjudged someone.

Her thoughts would've become even more depressive if the arrival of a black, shiny hawk hadn't startled her from her stupor. The creature was magnificent, she had to admit, and had probably cost a good amount of galleons. She observed Harry as he took the letter and gave the hawk an owl treat.

"Thanks, Xerex." He petted the animal softly and opened the letter, a soft smile coming to his face as he read on. The softness of his voice had startled her and she wondered who the letter might be from. She knew no one who had a hawk and knew Harry Potter. Harry turned the letter and wrote something on the backside before giving it to the hawk, who launched himself into the air and took of to places unknown.

With a soft sigh he turned and walked to the bed, lied down and closed his eyes, a serene smile remaining on his lips.

_Well, seems as if I have to wait for Mr. Potter to wake up._

The animagus closed her eyes and settled into a light slumber, her mind still trying to process the things she'd seen.

* * *

He stumbled down the street, to the world appearing a lousy drunk but in reality eyes alert and moving. It was bloody difficult to find these artifacts Dumbledore wanted but he had, as always, done the impossible and found them. Yes, Mundungus Fletcher was the best when it came to stolen cauldrons, illegal deals or simply information that was impossible to get.

He grinned as he rammed into a sneering Lucius Malfoy.

"Watch out where you are going, you filthy scum!" Malfoy barked, his face turning into a mask of disgust.

"Sor'y, …mate. Didn' see ya there." He stumbled past him, almost falling to the ground. Malfoy only sneered and walked away, without looking back, while muttering about imbeciles and mudbloods. He never noticed the missing list that was stolen from his pocket.

_Too easy.

* * *

_

She could barely wait for the evening to come. She shuddered. To feel his breath against her throat, a silky whisper of things yet to come, his hands embracing her, ice cold ecstasy and iron hot passion running through her veins. She moaned softly. It had been too long since the last time she'd seen him, free to love him. But tonight. Finally. Her icy blue eyes flashed with anticipation and want, a smirk coming to her face.

* * *

The door broke open and the man found himself surrounded by Death eaters, helpless to do anything. One thing was sure, he would not be able to come out of this alive.

"Where are they, old man?" The one right of him screeched, his wand only a few inches away from the man's face.

"Where is what? I don't know what you're talking about!" Sweet broke out on his forehead. How the hell did they know about this? He'd always been careful.

"You don't know?" the Death eater sneered. "We shall see. Crucio!" Indescribable pain ripped through the man's body, setting it aflame. He cancelled the spell after a few seconds.

"So, do you know now? Where is Ravenclaw's dagger?"

His heart was pounding and filled with fear, but he knew that he wouldn't, **couldn't** give them what they wanted. With a last, desperate attempt to hinder them, he pushed the button on his ring and gave a satisfied smile. He'd done his duty. The dagger was safe.

"What did you do?" the Death eater yelled but it was too late. The man had already left the world of the living.

"Great work, Lucius!" a smirking Bellatrix hissed. "You're really gonna get it this time. Master will be very displeased. And I'm going to watch as your blood seeps through the floor!" Her evil, maniacal laughter resonated in the room. Malfoy shot her a glare.

"Shut up, bitch." He'd always hated her. With clearly visible disdain he stepped on the corpse and walked to the door.

"Are you coming?" Without another glance he apparated away, knowing that his day would become very painful indeed. He hated it when the woman was right.

* * *

Darkness fell over Little Whining, street lamps turning on and shadows getting longer. The full moon shone in all of its brilliance and covered gently the silent houses. It was in the middle of this night that Minerva felt a soft wind blow and wake her up from her slumber. The green catlike eyes opened and slowly focused on the moving shadow in front of her.

There was a figure hanging from the windowsill! Panic started to fill her as she recognized Harry, when suddenly his muscles strained and he swung himself in a backwards somersault on the roof. Minerva's eyes widened as she saw his acrobatics. What the hell was going on?

He stood on the rooftop, the moonlight illuminating his imposing figure. Now, with the panic and the shock gone, she could take a closer look at her pupil. His raven hair was longer than it normally was and pulled into a ponytail with a few bangs framing his face. The black glasses were gone, so the brilliant green eyes sparkled with energy and life. The youth was clothed in a black coat, which seemed to be something similar to the ancient cloaks she'd seen in pictures of wizards of old. His trousers and shirt were also black, fitting nicely and a hilt of a sword could be seen in the folds of darkness.

He seemed like a creature from a dream. A raven born from the shadows of the night, only coming out when the sun was sleeping. He startled her when he began to run to the edge of the roof. He jumped and for a single moment in time she thought that he would plummet to his death. But it was as if he floated to the next roof and then the next, doing impossible feats while in the air, somersaults and cat flips seeming to be too easy for him.

It was a difficult for her to keep up with him, as her shorter legs were a disadvantage. He flew, whereas she ran, her thoughts tormenting her. Albus never said that his young protégé liked to jump rooftops when not fighting dark lords or winning Quidditch games. She snorted.

_I wonder if he knows what Harry Potter is up to at nights._

Probably not. She only hoped that he wouldn't break his neck in the process of dancing with death.

_How do they always say? I love my job!_

He was a junky. He knew that.

_But who fucking cares?_

He grinned, although his grin soon turned into a smirk as he saw his destination. His coat swished as he landed beside a startled dark haired man.

If cats could pant she would certainly have done that. Trust Potter to let her run across town without him knowing it. She looked around. This was, by the look of it, a dangerous part of town. The dark streets were filled with young people in similar clothes to those of Harry. Loud, heavy metal filled the air, while people danced, their bodies almost crushing each other. Something like this was not what she'd expected to find.

She spotted Harry not too far away and inched closer so that she could hear what was being said. But what she heard shocked her even more than anything else this day.

Harry smirked darkly as he walked through the crowd, loud greetings of "Hey, Slytherin!" or "Hey, Des!" reaching him. He didn't notice Minerva and he certainly didn't notice the dark figure hiding in the shadows.

_Slytherin? SLYTHERIN!_

_**What the hell did they mean with SLYTHERIN!**_

She looked at the smirking Harry and almost cried out as a hand grabbed him from him behind and pushed him against the wall.

Pain filled his mind as he collided with the hard wall but was soon replaced with pleasure as he felt soft, warm lips pressing against his. He groaned aloud and let his hands roam over the delicate but strong body crushing his. Only one person could make him feel this way. Sharp sparks of desire coursed through his body and made his kisses even more frantic and desperate. There was only a single thing that came to his mind: heaven.

_I'll never be the same_

_Not alone or afraid, _

_Control your fear_

_No tears will fall,_

_Now you've seen what I've become._

_Darkness seeping into my dreams_

_Waking me up to reality_

_I don't want to feel_

_The destiny of truth_

_And I ask you:_

_What is it, what is truth?_

_Is it truth, this sick reality?_

_Or is it just there to soothe, to please?_

_We all just look but do not see_

_But I've seen the world, the shadows_

_Living the dark, escaping the light_

_Having the sight I finally took flight_

_But am I free to live my life_

_Or am I just an animal caged, no way to fight?_

_I don't know what will come_

_But I will fight, fly, fall_

_To be the thing that I've become_

_Changed_

_To not see the world in Black and White_

_When the Grey is not far away_

_So beware of what you see_

_When saying_

"_Reality, truth is not what I fear."_

_You never see all shades of Grey_

_When seeing is the only key.

* * *

_

**_Thanks for the reviews, VM and methoslover. As for the person being Harry. You'll see. Be patient. I hope you like the new chapter. The poem and thoughts are my own but I thought that it fit quite well here._**

**_Chi_**


	4. Chapter3 A New Beginning

_**Shadowed Truth**_

_Author's Note:_ English is not my mother tongue so be warned. I don't know where this story is going but I just couldn't not write this. The idea kinda stuck in my head. I don't have a beta reader so bear with me on this account. Well, enough with this. On with the story.

_Disclaimer:_ Harry Potter is not mine. Everything belongs to JKR and I only do this for my enjoyment and not for any profit or money.

_**Chapter 3-**_

_**A New Beginning**_

The Ministry of Magic. The one institution which was truthful and honorable, helping the people and hunting down evil. Minister Fudge especially was someone who upheld the law and stopped corruption. If that was true or not could be argued about, but the poster of Fudge certainly said so and it gave Kingsley Shackelbolt a headache. Some stupid, bureaucratic idiot thought that hanging the smiling head of the minister's three feet big head on the wall where everyone could see it was a great idea.

He groaned. Sometimes he really hated his job. Well, he couldn't do anything about it, since he was one of the order's informants. Kingsley remembered the order meeting where the mention of this ridiculous poster came up. He snickered. That had been one of the few times that he'd actually agreed with Severus Snape. The incompetent idiot had to be eliminated.

_"I. Hate. My. Job." Kingsley Shackelbolt said as he sauntered into the kitchen of Grimmauld Place 12 and lowered himself into a seat. The Order members around the table looked curiously at him but he only sighed._

_"Can we have Fudge assassinated?" The reactions were different. Snape raised an eyebrow but looked interested enough, while Molly was simply shocked and Fred and George Weasley grinned._

_"I have a three feet big head of him right in the middle of the auror division's office." He grimaced but it turned into a rather shocked smirk as he heard the next sentence, which came most surprisingly from Snape._

_"Would you prefer a painless death or something slow and agonizing? I think that I have some of the Craindiare potion left."_

He snorted to himself as he remembered the reactions to _that _statement. Nobody had known if Snape was joking or actually seriously considering to give him the potion. Well, Shackelbolt wouldn't put it past him. After all, Severus Snape didn't suffer fools, or imbeciles, as he called them, easily.

His musings were cut short as he heard the alarms. With a quick look at the map dread crept up in him. Lord Voldemort was attacking and it was very close to Harry Potter's location. If something happened to him, there would be hell to pay.

* * *

Harry Potter was in heaven. The beat of the music resonated loudly in the air and the heat of this place was suffocating. Her scent was weighting heavily around him, enticing him, controlling him, her body pressing against him, ready to give her soul.

"God." He moaned. "I missed you." His forehead settled against hers, as their raged breaths started to calm down.

"I know. I craved you." She kissed him again. Suddenly she growled." It was torture at the platform. _Those _girls all falling over you and you pretending to be ignorant. I nearly went over and ripped their throats out for daring to do that!"

He chuckled as she glared at him. God, he loved her.

"It's not funny, Des." She glared anew, before sighing. "I just…it's so difficult to stay away from you, when I see you. We should be able to show the world who you are, who we are, but we can't. I can't love you in public and it's tearing me apart." She lowered her head, while he held her closer. The misery radiated from them, basking them in the coldness of the world's harshness. It wasn't fair but then, not many things were.

"There will be a time, my love. Do not despair." His soft voice filled her with hope. Hope that it wouldn't be necessary to continue like this.

"I know, but do you…" She was interrupted as the ground trembled. Several dancers stopped to see what was going on, only to scream and run away. Blind panic swept through the crowd as green lights and battle cries filled the air.

"We're never lucky." The young woman by his side said. "What's it with our dates and evil maniacs? It always the bloody same."

He grinned, even though the situation was anything but funny.

"Well, my dear. The curse of my family. We get the fun things to deal with." With a quick motion of his hand the beautiful and deadly sword was out of its sheath, a green snake wrapped around its hilt, ready to strike, and shiny runes flowing along the sword. They glanced at each other and smirked. After all, what is a relationship without some action?

"Let's dance."

* * *

The kitchen of Grimmauld Place 12 was filled to the brim with noise and order members, although most of the noise came from the Weasley family, the twins in particular. After a tiring and long meeting everyone got together at the kitchen. From time to time, one could hear the screeching voice of Molly Weasley trying to control her children, the paranoid mutterings of old Mad Eye Moody or feel the glare of one spy extraordinaire Severus Snape. And of course, in the middle of it all sat one very happy and merrily smiling Albus Dumbledore.

While some people would say that Albus Dumbledore was an eccentric and totally mad wizard, although the greatest of all, it could also be said that Albus Dumbledore loved the people around him and tried to do the best for everyone.

"Molly, your cooking is just delicious this evening. My dear, I must commend you." His grandfatherly voice praised, as Mrs. Weasley blushed. It wasn't everyday that you got comments like that from the greatest wizard of that century.

"Thank you, Albus. How kind of you. Would you like some more potatoes?" However, he never got the chance to answer as the kitchen door slammed open and a heavily breathing Nymphadora Tonks raced in, panting and speaking too fast to understand.

"What's the matter, Nymphadora?" She glared at him, nobody was allowed to call her Nymphadora, but answered nevertheless.

"Headmaster, there's been an attack. It's not too far from Harry's residence. Kingsley sends me."

He reached into his robes and got a crystal ball out, ignoring the questioning looks from the others, and stared into it. He blanched.

"It should show me Harry Potter, as it is linked to the Potter blood but I do not see him."

An alarmed look crossed his face as he swiftly got up and almost ran out of the room, while giving orders.

"Alastor, take Tonks and Severus and check on Harry. Filius, Remus, Mundungus and everybody else, you're with me. We apparate to the battle. Take formations."

It was only a matter of seconds before everyone was out of the door.

* * *

Cries of despair, pain and death rang through the air. The night smelled of decay and blood. No one would have believed that this had been one of the more intense raves just some minutes ago, where people had fun while dancing to their heart's content.

The eyes of Albus Dumbledore grew cold as he quickly surveyed the massacre, giving orders while throwing curses himself. Death, despair and lost innocence were some of the things he hated about war. Unfortunately it was necessary sometimes. One had to fight for what one believed in. This, he had learned many years ago.

The battle ragged around him, as a new Death Eater fell and his partner yelled that Albus Dumbledore was here. Many turned with fear, whereas others with hope.

"Albus, behind you!" the voice of Remus yelled.

With long practiced movements he bent to the right and sidestepped the claws of the creature. Big, deadly claws and menacing eyes gave the beast an evil character. But it were the surrounding shadows and the fact that he had not seen such a creature in his 150 years **ever**, that really scared him.

"Reducto!" The spell flew as fast as a bullet at the monster but went right through it. The fear intensified. He ducked again as a killing curse flew right where his head would have been and moved in a fluid motion to the left, barely escaping the sharp claws, which would have bored a hole into him if he had been a little slower. Suddenly, he heard a sound behind him, as if something cut the air, and turned. There, before him, was the beast, lying dead on the dark street. His head shot around, trying to see what killed it, for whatever it was, it would be a lot more dangerous than the creature, but found nothing. The old headmaster saw his companions coming his way, medi-wizards, aurors and obliviators behind them, all helping the wounded muggles and erasing their memories. The fight had, apparently, ended while he had been battling this monster.

"What in heaven's name is that, headmaster?" Remus asked. The werewolf seemed very concerned. No wonder, really. He had been the one next to him and had seen what this creature could do.

"I do not know, my boy. I do not know." He sighed.

"Headmaster! Headmaster!" A shout came from behind him. He turned around and saw a young medi-wizard waving him his way. There was someone lying beside him. The group quickly walked to him and many gasped as they saw what he had discovered. There, on the ground, lay Minerva McGonagall, unconscious.

"My dear, what happened to you?" his whispered words reached each one of the group and let a shiver curse through them.

* * *

_How disgusting!_ That was the main thought that went through Severus Snape's mind as they apparated to Little Whining. The houses were disgustingly similar, the gardens were similar. _The bloody muggles probably too._ If there was one thing he really hated, it was similarity. It reminded him too much of his service with Voldemort.

Moody's eyes ran over the whole place, his paranoid behavior not in the least affected by the calm night. The moon shone brightly on the bad lit street and the white clouds floated calmly on the night sky.

With mostly silent steps-Tonks was with them- they reached the door to No. 4 Privet Drive, private hell hole of Harry Potter and empire of Vernon Dursley, the Almighty. Tonks knocked.

"Bloody…!...do not know when normal people…surely boy…gonna pay" Heavy footsteps were heard going down the stairs. Several seconds later, a man came out, purple colored face, incredibly fat and seriously angry.

"What do you bloody want?" he growled.

Snape raised an eyebrow, while Tonks grinned happily on and Moody frowned. He certainly didn't like that.

"Hello, Mr. Dursley. We hope we're not making too many problems but we're here to see Harry. You know…" She was rudely interrupted before she could speak again.

"So you're the same bloody freaks as him! I should have known. Bloody boy. No normal people…"

An angry growl came from Moody.

"It seems that you do not remember me as well as I do you, Dursley. We've met at the station. I'm sure you remember that or do I have to remind you, Dursley?" His voice was menacing and intimidating. Alastor Moody wasn't the best auror for nothing. Vernon blanched.

"I…I d-d-d-didn't do anything. Please, spar me and my family. The boy's up in his room. I didn't do anything! Please, do not curse me with this m…m word!" The man was reduced to a pleading and shivering mass.

Moody nodded and motioned for the others to precede him before turning to Vernon.

"That better be true. You would not like the consequences. That I promise you."

Harry Potter's bedroom was nothing like he thought it would be. It was bare, decorated with only a trunk, a bed, a desk and a chair. Nothing else.

_Maybe he's not as spoilt as I thought_ was his first thought but he stubbornly chased it away. Ok, maybe he didn't live in the lap of luxury but then, he still was an arrogant, self-centered child.

Unfortunately the fact that Harry Potter was nowhere seen, helped him in this assumption.

"Seems as if our savior ran away." He whispered amused.

"Shut up, Snape! The boy's not here and I do not see any indication that here might have been a fight going on. So he must have left on his own. Search through the room for clues." Moody growled.

Snape rolled his eyes but complied. The savior was probably at a party or such other inconsequential nonsense. Annoyance filled him. He would remember it the next time he could take points from Potter.

The sudden shout of I found something ripped him from his masochistic fantasies. Snape leveled a glare at Tonks.

"What is it this time?" He reached and looked at the parchment. It was not big, obviously a kind of letter, but the only thing written there was: mine.

"Did you try revealing spells?" While he didn't know how or why Potter would get concealed messages, the feel of the magic inside the parchment was distinctly that of a concealment charm, a strong one. Being a spy had its perks.

He wasn't surprised when she shook her head.

"Revelaro!" Beautiful spidery words appeared instead of the mine.

_My love,_

_The raven flies tonight, again._

_I crave you._

_May the darkness protect you._

_B._

He raised an eyebrow at these words.

"Interesting. Your savior has apparently more secrets than some would have thought."

"What do you mean, Snape?"

Severus sneered.

"What I mean, Moody, is that this is a typical Slytherin code." His order amulet heated up. It was time to return. With a swish of his robes, the Slytherin Head of House left, one bewildered Tonks and even more paranoid Moody trailing behind him.

* * *

"Do you know what happened?" Severus asked him. The headmaster shook his head.

"We found her on a side street near the battle. She isn't harmed and should wake up soon but I'm still concerned." He shook his head, his silver hair falling into his concerned blue eyes.

"Why was she there? I do not believe that someone like Minerva would wander at two o'clock at night in one of the worse parts of London, especially when she received four stunners only weeks ago. You would never let any harm come to her." Severus concluded. He knew how much Minerva meant to Albus. The headmaster would never have let her go into battle in such a condition. He loved her too much for that.

"You're right, she would not. After her injuries, I sent her on a mission to look after Harry in her cat form. It was only observation, nothing harmful. You told me that he wasn't there and showed me the note. The answers lie with him." Albus frowned. Where was Harry and what happened? Why was he in such a part of town? He looked at the sleeping beauty before him, gently covered with warm blankets and sleeping peacefully.

* * *

"We are assembled here to discuss a predicament that we have come across last night. Minerva here," he nodded to his right," was found unconscious at the sight of the battle last night. As many of you have heard, yesterday at two o'clock at night, Voldemort attacked a muggle gathering called rave with his Death Eaters and creatures of unknown origin.", he held a hand up before the questions could begin, "Do not worry, you'll get your chance to ask. At the end of the school year, I gave Minerva the mission of observing Harry Potter and protecting him if need be. Harry Potter disappeared last night from his relative's house and Minerva can't remember what happened." He sat down.

And everything was over flooded with chaos.

* * *

To say that it had been a tiring meeting was like saying that the Minister is a moron. Minerva sighed. In the end, the heated debates brought them only to some conclusions: Firstly, they had to see what and why her memories were erased. She only remembered sleeping on the tree in front of Harry Potter's house and there were some scenes of someone in a dark street. But that was all she remembered. Secondly, they had to know what these creatures were. Even Albus had problems defeating them, not knowing what they were. She shivered. They could become a great danger. And then there was Harry Potter. He disappeared and only reappeared at the brig of dawn. Minerva knew that Albus wanted to bring him here but waited for the right moment.

She slowly massaged her temples. It was all so confusing! Why couldn't she remember! Minerva felt a warm hand on her shoulder. She didn't need to turn to know whose it was. His warm voice filled her with calm.

"Are you alright?" He slipped silently into the seat beside her.

Minerva slowly nodded and relaxed a bit more when his arm went around her and pressed her to him, the warmth of his body pleasantly washing over her.

"Yes. It's just so…frustrating!" Her hand settled comfortably on his chest. "I know that someone memory charmed me and I know that I saw something important but I don't know what! You know, I've got the feeling that it has something to do with Harry." She suddenly frowned, thinking.

"What is it, my dear?" His twinkling blue eyes smiled down at her, trying to ease her discomfort, even not knowing what troubled her.

"It's just…He seemed to be a completely different person than at school." Her frown deepened. "I don't know how to describe it but he was somewhat…darker." His twinkling dimmed. "No, not that way. I mean, he reminded me of Severus. The way he moved and held himself. It just wasn't the way he usually moves. You know that I studied a lot about body movement for my animagus transformation and I know the difference between the way he moved before and the way he moves now." Her soft hands squeezed his, as she saw how much this statement had affected him.

"Do not worry. I may not know Harry as well as you do, but I do not believe that he would turn dark," she reassured him.

"Anyway, I think I know of a way to break the memory charm. We need to go to Hogwarts. Severus, Filius, Remus, Alastor and Poppy are already there. It is a complicated ritual but we would know what you saw. Do you want to do this," The sincerity in his eyes and voice convinced her right away, "We would see a lot of your memories and thoughts before coming to the block the memory charm has built up. It is your right to decline." But she only smiled at him, knowing in her heart that she could trust him with everything.

"I want to know what happened and I trust you all. You've been the best friends I ever had." Albus offered her his hand and she took it, both going to the fireplace and flooing away.

* * *

The chanting grew and the earth vibrated with barely reigned magic. Six of the most powerful witches and wizards of this time were standing in a circle, in the middle of them Minerva McGonagall, hands on a bowl and concentrating. They would do everything in their power to help their friend.

The colors swirled and encompassed the group, the magic now flowing freely, trying to find an opening.

Finally, the chanting ceased and everything dissolved. The quest for the lost memory and the answers to their questions began. Come hell or high water, they would not back down before they knew what had happened.

* * *

In the depths of the castle a figure raised his head, acknowledging the powerful magic that filled the air. A frown graced his face. He lowered his face again, his amused muttering echoing in the silent hall.

"It seems as if we're not going to be hidden for long now, my son." A relieved and deep laugh went through the hall.

"Yes, indeed. The curse of our family. But then, we wouldn't want it any other way."

* * *

"Do you feel it?", he asked as she only rolled her eyes and hugged him from behind, almost hanging on him.

"Of course, I feel it. Every bloody magical creature in the radius of 500 miles must feel it." He smirked at her sarcasm.

"Well, what do you think they're doing? My memory charm is pretty strong but I don't know if it's going to hold against something like this." She gave him a skeptical look.

"Who are you trying to kid? If you wanted you could have put a strong enough charm on her that she wouldn't even remember her own name. You wanted him to find out. You're tired of going behind their backs." she whispered in his ear, clearly pleased by the shiver that followed it.

He moaned as she nibbled at his ear, her eyes glinting with barely suppressed passion.

"Clearly, my love, you're even more devious than I have thought." He snickered, swiftly turning around and taking her in his arms.

She raised an eyebrow, an eerie imitation of her godfather.

"What?" The perfect picture of innocence. "We are here between Slytherins, after all. Did you expect anything less?"

"Of course not."

* * *

A fine mist floated above the ground, filling everything, so that they couldn't see a thing. The group of seven looked around, clearly wondering where they were.

"Now, what?" Irritation was written all over the potions master's face. He didn't know where he was exactly and that was one thing that he didn't like at all. As a spy information and knowledge were crucial for your survival.

The headmaster only smiled at him and he glared back. Another thing that was bloody irritating about the old man: he was always unnatural calm.

"Now, we see what happened." The mist cleared, almost as if on command.

The scene they saw was a familiar one. The staff was gathered at the staff room, hearing for the first time that Ginny Weasley had been taken to the chamber of secrets. A sharp gasp was heard from behind the door, heard by the real staff but not by those in the memory. There pressed against the door were two of the infamous Gryffindor Golden Trio. Ron was shocked, falling down to the floor, while Harry had a determined spark in his eyes.

The scene dissolved.

"I've always wondered how they knew that she had been taken." Minerva said, storing away the look Harry had for a short moment. "But why does it show us this? I never saw them."

"This ancient artifact of Rowena Ravenclaw is a kind of Pensive. We can walk around freely and it will show us the events that it thinks are important for us to know." A new scene appeared. "Even if it is not your memory, Minerva."

The chamber of secrets was lightened eerily. The older teachers gasped at what they saw. There, in the appearance of a sixteen year old, stood Tom Marvolo Riddle, the man who would later become the feared Dark Lord Voldemort. It seemed that they were in the middle of talking to each other, both with cold, dangerous eyes and calm and cold tone.

"So, why did you want to meet me?" Harry's tone was deliberately cold, but the teachers could see the hate in his eyes.

"I've never seen him like that." whispered Remus, slightly afraid of the young man he considered a godson. The others nodded, although Snape had a calculating glint in his eyes. They heard as Riddle talked about the way he tricked Hagrid, hearing the pleasure in his voice.

"I'm quite sure that Dumbledore saw through you." Harry mentioned, while Tom only nodded.

"Yes. I recognized the danger of doing anything while the old fool was here, keeping a close surveillance on me. But I didn't want to waste the years I had searched for the chamber and so I decided to make this diary to preserve my memory and fulfill the work of Salazar Slytherin when there was the chance." He sneered.

A cold laugh sounded through the chamber and all teachers quickly turned to Harry, only to find him laughing at Tom, his eyes having a crueler version of the headmaster's twinkle.

"You are misguided, Tom. You think that you know what Salazar Slytherin really wanted, do you? You really think that. How sad is that, Tom, that you pretend to be his heir and do not even know the truth." He whispered cruelly, a feral grin on his face.

"What do you mean?" The other asked, while the teachers stared strangely at Harry. This was not the usual Harry Potter. The kind-hearted and brave one but another, a cold calculating and totally different boy.

Potter hissed something and Riddle's eyes widened.

"You lie. That cannot be true."

"It's hard, isn't it? To find that you believed in something false your whole life." They stared as the talking continued, seeing with their own eyes how the name Voldemort came into existence.

"I knew that there would be a day when the whole world would fear my name and I would be the greatest wizard of the world."

The cold words of Harry halted him in his speech.

"You aren't."

"I'm not…?"

"You aren't the greatest wizard in the world." Filius choked as he heard it. There he stood and saw as a twelve year old boy defied the Dark Lord, a man crueler than many before him.

"I pity you. The greatest wizard in this world is Albus Dumbledore." Tears shone in the headmaster's eyes as he saw how the young boy stood to him, even faced against death. He felt Minerva squeeze his hand and smiled down at her, silently wondering how someone so young could survive this. "Your magical powers are not enough to take Hogwarts. Not once have you dared to do so. Not once have you stood face to face against Albus Dumbledore. You fear him." Harry stated and saw as Riddle became enraged.

"You know that if you go against Hogwarts, it would be your defeat. For Hogwarts will not help a false heir." Riddle's face was covered in hate.

"I do not fear Dumbledore! He ran at the memory of me!" He snarled.

"Do you really believe that? He isn't as far away as you seem to believe." The cold tone again. Suddenly beautiful music filled the air and interrupted them both. A beautiful phoenix swept from above, with the sorting hat in his claws.

"So this is what the almighty Dumbledore sends you? A batty, old hat and a singing bird? Is this the power of your Dumbledore?" Riddle sneered.

Harry didn't answer and the teachers were captured in their own thoughts. Was this indeed the only thing that the young boy had to survive this? How could that be? Surely, there would be more than that. They barely heard Riddle and Harry talk about the sacrifice of his mother, wondering when things would escalate.

"So your mother saved you? But I see now, that there is nothing special about you. That's strange, isn't it? You and I, we are so similar. Even you should see that." A chill went down the spines of the teachers. "We are both half-bloods, both orphans, both raised by muggles who hated us. We are probably the only ones to speak parseltongue since the times of the Great Salazar Slytherin himself. Was it only luck that you escaped me so many, many times?" He asked, his voice like silk.

"But let's test it, shall we? The greatest Dark Lord of all, heir of Salazar Slytherin," Harry snorted." against the famous Harry Potter and the weapons, sent by Dumbledore." He sneered.

Minerva looked over at her young lion, expecting to see at least a little fear, but to her astonishment, a strange smile graced his face, his eyes remaining as cold as during the whole talk.

"Bring it on, Riddle and be warned: I may be a savior to the wizarding world but I am not a Gryffindor." His eyes sparkled and the green shone even more than before, standing out from everything else.

The young Voldemort seemed surprised but said nonetheless. "As you wish." With a swish of his robes, he turned to the statue of Salazar Slytherin, hovering menacing above them. The teachers were only now recognizing it, as they had been concentrating solely on the word duel. Salazar Slytherin had been a handsome man, his high cheekbones and piercing eyes giving him a lot of charisma.

Riddle opened his mouth and hissed. In blank shock and horror the teachers looked as a big snake slithered out of Slytherin's open mouth.

A hiss came from behind them. Riddle only laughed.

"You can't bring him on your side. He has been too long a time in my service."

Disgust appeared on Harry's face.

"You robed him of his soul!" The sharp accusation came without hesitation.

Riddle only smirked.

"Run for your life."

Harry closed his eyes, the strange smile still on his lips.

"When this is over, I will kill you, Tom." He set the sorting hat on his head and kneeled, completely still.

"The basilisk can't do anything to us, my friends. This is only a memory. Lifelike, yes. Real and harmful, no." The soft and reassuring voice of Albus Dumbledore said. Some sighed in relief, while others looked at the basilisks and Harry, now wondering how he came out of this mess alive.

"I really wonder what he did. Big thing, hard to kill." Moody grumbled, his respect for the boy-who-lived rising extremely.

"He's probably been lucky. Potters and their luck." sneered Snape.

They saw as the basilisk, poised to strike, hovered over Harry, who was still kneeling. Everyone tensed, clearly thinking that he just couldn't escape something like this.

The head of the basilisk rushed down, ready to kill its prey, who still didn't move, even though he must have heard the snake. In the last second, Harry jumped to the left wall, tossing himself with his feet against it and propelling himself into the air, swirling above the ground, still grasping the edge of the sorting hat. Suddenly, he ripped it from his head and landed on the ground, while Fawkes was busy poking the eyes of the basilisk out.

Harry reached into the hat and pulled something out. Dumbledore smiled. "The Sword of Gryffindor." he said. "Harry killed the basilisk with that." With a sure grasp he settled into a battle stance and ran at the basilisk, trying to wound it.

"My god, where did he learn that?" Filius was obviously referring to the acrobatics young Mister Potter did.

"I have no clue, Filius. It seems that there are more things to Harry Potter than meets the eyes." Albus frowned. The Gryffindor had always seemed so open about his feelings and actions, something he was not in this exchange with Riddle. Was the Harry Potter he knew the real Harry Potter? Or was he seeing just a façade, made to please the world?

A metallic ring could be heard throughout the chamber. All heads shot to their young student, seeing that Gryffindor's sword was lying several feet away from him and that the basilisk was ready to kill him. Tears started to gather in Minerva's eyes as she saw him. Of course, she knew that he came out alive after this confrontation but it still bothered her seeing him like that.

Riddle's laughter could be heard echoing around the chamber. He clearly thought that this was the end of Harry.

"Well, it seems as if I won." But the grim smile on his opponents lips told him something completely different. A bright green and silver light gathered around Harry, fully wrapping around him, embracing and bathing him. Albus and the others shielded their eyes, for the light was too bright.

The sight that showed itself to them was something that not one of them had expected.

There he was kneeling, the, now from silk, black robes, wrapping themselves around him like waves of a dark ocean. A sword was in his hands, adorned with spotless emeralds and a snake, poised to strike. Runes were running down the glinting metal, the blade deadly sharp. He stood up, his hair shifting with a nonexistent wind. On his chest was the crest of Slytherin, flowing with magic and power. His eyes, glinting in the dim light, had become even more dangerous.

"How can that be?" the astonished Riddle whispered, as shocked as the teachers.

Harry smirked. With a quick thrust his sword bored itself into the basilisk, effectively killing it, but not before slightly gracing him with a tooth, the poison already spreading throughout his body. A beautiful cry filled the air as Fawkes swept down to him and let his tears run into his wound, healing it.

His movements were as elegant as the robes he wore, as he came near Riddle. He smirked.

"I think I forgot to tell you that the sorting hat wanted to place me into Slytherin. We have really a lot in common." He bent his head, his voice dropping to a whisper. "But unlike you, I know that there is not only power." With a cry his blade went through the diary, Riddle screaming as the life giving magic left him. "You underestimated me, Tom. Again."

Ginny began to stir and he carefully hid his sword. The teachers could see the name Salazar Slytherin on the blade. The crest disappeared fully and he dropped to his knees, cradling Ginny gently in his arms. A voice came from behind him.

"I've always told you that you could be great in Slytherin." The sorting hat.

Harry smiled, his eyes softening and giving him more of the appearance of being the young Gryffindor the teachers knew.

"I know. Me being in Gryffindor doesn't mean that I'm any less Slytherin." He smirked as the sorting hat snorted.

"Should have put you to the other snakes. You're too devious to be in Gryffindor, although you have a large amount of their courage. Poor Gryffindors are not gonna survive with someone like you between them." A sudden hopeful look crossed his face. "You are sure that you do not want a resorting?"

This time the snort came from Harry. "What, and always look behind my back so that the little junior Death Eaters do not slit my throat when I'm asleep? No thank you. Another time, maybe. I'm a Slytherin after all and my first goal is survival."

The sorting hat only smiled.

"She's coming around." And then it happened. As if a switch had been pushed, the shoulders sacked, the face became emotional and teary-eyed, while the hands shook slightly. The order members looked on in astonishment as the Slytherin version of Harry Potter switched in the time of an eye blink into that of a Gryffindor Harry Potter. They looked on as he led Ginny out of the chamber, knowing that he would be explaining everything to the staff a few minutes later.

For a few minutes no one spoke. Nobody could really believe what happened. Certainly, it was quite shocking to see someone so young defeat the young Dark Lord but it was a lot more shocking to see that Harry Potter had fooled everyone for five years.

"Did you know that the hat had wanted to place him into Slytherin?" Minerva asked, while the others also showed their curiosity.

Albus nodded, himself not quite believing what had happened.

"Yes. I had no idea, however, that his Slytherin side was this…prominent." He spoke a little concerned.

"The question is if this is the real Harry Potter we just saw. Or if the Gryffindor version is him." Remus concluded. The fact that James' son was this cunning, clever, _Slytherin _was quite disconcerting.

Severus snorted. He had seen many Slytherins and as much as it pained him to include James' son in this group, it seemed that Harry Potter had become one of his snakes.

"Of course, that had been the real one. I saw many facades in my work as spy and as Head of House but Mr. Potter has topped them all. As much as it pains me to admit it: You will not find someone more Slytherin than that. Hiding his talents, manipulating Riddle so he underestimated him, this extreme cunning." His voice ended sounding proud and appreciating.

Despite the situation Albus chuckled. It was finally time that Severus saw who Harry Potter was. Although this was not quite what he himself had thought, it was a more acceptable Harry Potter for Severus Snape.

A laugh came from his left.

"Always said that the lad had it in him. Constant vigilance. Good tactic." Moody nodded, pleased to find that their savior wasn't as incompetent as some made him out to be.

The scene dissolved as even Minerva started to laugh. Harry Potter may have been mostly Slytherin but he still was one of hers and she cared about her cubs.

As new surroundings appeared, Minerva somehow knew that this was the end of their journey. Powerful magic floated in front of her, seemingly locking a memory inside it, not letting it out.

"This is it." Albus whispered in awe. Even he had not seen such a powerful memory charm in his life.

"It's incredible." Filius said, completely taken with this magnificent sight. "I've never seen anything like that before. Look at the patterns, this delicate woven strings, interweaving with each other, powerful and thus creating something so masterful."

"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's get to work!" Snape sneered. Several nodded. It was time to know what happened.

* * *

Filius smiled happily as the last string disappeared. It had taken them roughly two hours to fully bring it down. A pity, really, considering the fact that it had truly been a masterpiece.

They were all sitting in Albus' office waiting for Minerva to wake up.

"I know what happened." He looked over at his friend, seeing the teary but determined eyes.

Albus smiled kindly at her.

"I woke up to the feeling of something brushing against me. It was then that I saw Harry climbing on the roof. You should have seen his acrobatics! He could have broken his neck!" Albus squeezed her hands, giving her the reassurances that she needed. "He had the same sword we saw in the chamber, the one with the snake and was clothed completely in black. When he started running and jumping the rooftops I followed him. We came to a rather run down part of town, it was where the attack has been. There were people and they called him Slytherin or Des."

"Seems as if he is widely known as a Slytherin." Remus muttered, frowning while Severus smirked. Yes, he could definitely get along with this new- or was it old?- Potter.

Minerva shot them a glare.

"Then he was suddenly grabbed from behind and pressed to the wall." Alarm came into the eyes of the others, fearing the worst but Minerva only chuckled and shook her head. "I think he might have been kissed unconscious by the young woman." She turned with an amused look to Severus. "It was one of yours."

He raised an eyebrow. Of his?

"Of mine?"

"Blaise Zabini." She chuckled again as she saw the shocked look in his eyes. "Mister Potter seems to have a lot more secrets than we thought, doesn't he, Severus?"

"And a good taste in women." Severus absently muttered.

The headmaster's eyes were twinkling furiously but dimmed when he heard the next sentence.

"Then came the attack."

_**Flashback**_

_"There will be a time, my love. Do not despair." His soft voice filled her with hope. Hope that it wouldn't be necessary to continue like this._

_"I know, but do you…" She was interrupted as the ground trembled. Several dancers stopped to see what was going on, only to scream and run away. Blind panic swept through the crowd as green lights and battle cries filled the air._

_"We're never lucky." The young woman by his side said. "What's it with our dates and evil maniacs? It always the bloody same."_

_He grinned, even though the situation was anything but funny._

_"Well, my dear. The curse of my family. We get the fun things to deal with." With a quick motion of his hand the beautiful and deadly sword was out of its sheath, a green snake wrapped around its hilt, ready to strike, and shiny runes flowing along the sword. They glanced at each other and smirked. After all, what is a relationship without some action?_

_"Let's dance."_

_And dance they did. With cat-like grace they hid in the shadows and attacked Death Eaters and creatures alike, always quickly putting them out of action. Minutes ticked away as the fight continued, finally ending when they heard aurors apparating in._

_Harry turned, only to see his transfiguration professor lying wounded on the ground. With quick steps he and Blaise were by her side._

_"Do not speak, professor. We are going to help you." He motioned to Blaise who laid a soft hand on her wounded stomach. A warm light filled her as she began to feel herself healing._

_Harry shot her a sad but determined look._

_"I'm sorry, Professor. You won't be able to remember this for a while. Professor Dumbledore is not far away. Do not worry. Everything will be alright." With a last sad look, he softly lowered her to the ground, speaking the memory charm in a whisper._

_A soft I'm sorry was the last thing she heard._

_**End Flashback**_

"So he saved you?" Albus asked, tears in his eyes. He had always considered Harry to be something like a grandson to him. To know that he had been forced to memory charm Minerva, while saving her life, brought grief up in him. What was it that Harry couldn't tell him? Oh, how he hoped that he would tell him!

"Yes." She had also tears in her eyes.

"We will bring him and Blaise here, tomorrow morning. Hopefully, we will be able to help them in whatever they need." The others nodded softly, privately wondering what had happened to make Harry see the need to do something so drastic.

* * *

Somewhere else Harry Potter stood with his arms around Blaise Zabini, her head softly settled against his shoulder.

"They know." Her quiet voice said. Her blue eyes shone with contentment.

He smiled down at her. Even if the world went down in chaos, he still had her.

"I know. Now, we will not hide anymore." They stared up to the heavens, knowing that the next day would bring hardships but also joy and as the stars twinkled down at them, they found themselves, for the first time, really relaxing. Tomorrow would be a new beginning.

* * *

**Author's Note: Puh! 20 pages! I wrote the whole day and just couldn't stop! grin**

**I hope that you like this chapter. So, how many of you thought that it would be Blaise? As you see there is even a little AD/MM interaction, although I didn't plan it. Enjoy the chapter and review if you want. I'm always glad if I get some reviews or constructive criticism.**

**Chi**


	5. Chapter 4 The Darkened

_**Shadowed Truth**_

_Author's Note:_ English is not my mother tongue so be warned. I don't know where this story is going but I just couldn't not write this. The idea kinda stuck in my head. I don't have a beta reader so bear with me on this account. Well, enough with this. On with the story.

_Disclaimer:_ Harry Potter is not mine. Everything belongs to JKR and I only do this for my enjoyment and not for any profit or money.

_**Chapter 4-**_

_**The Darkened**_

_**Explanations**_

_Knowing is one thing. Explaining is something entirely different.

* * *

_

The infirmary was and always would be the place Harry Potter liked the least of Hogwarts. The cause of this being, that he always landed, one way or the other, in it. So how could it be any other way, than that Madame Pompfrey was now nursing a throughout sarcastic, moody and annoyed Harry Potter.

"I've already told you that I'm alright!" he drawled angrily, his eyes flashing with annoyance, as Madame Pompfrey ordered him to take off his shirt. With resigned compliance, he sighed and did as ordered, ignoring the gasps from behind him. He knew that his back didn't look good. It never did, actually. But he wasn't a Slytherin for nothing and concealing spells were a wonderful thing. A wonderful thing if you weren't currently tired after saving someone's life. Again. Add to that his uncle's tender ministrations and you had a high chance that everything would go very wrong.

"What happened to you, my dear boy?" the voice of his headmaster, someone he loved like he would have loved his grandfather said. He didn't think that there could be a more loving grandfather, or as near to a grandfather as he would ever get, than Albus Dumbledore. He knew that he wouldn't be able to deny his condition to this man for long.

"I got into a fight with some street kids. It turned out to be a little more violent than expected…"he said in a nonchalant voice. Dumbledore looked skeptical and was about to answer when the infirmary doors opened.

The young man's head spun around and his breath caught in his throat. There she was, storming into the infirmary, her pale face in an impassive mask, her designer robes and cloak billowing behind her, making her look even more dangerous than normal. But it were her eyes that gave her away, concern and pain, great pain, shining in them. His annoyance quickly turned into seriousness and concern, although his face was almost as impassive as hers. She turned to Dumbledore, anger in her eyes.

"What am I doing here?" The mask turned hateful and she shot a glare at Harry, who glared back, equally hateful. But both were thinking something entirely different than that.

_What happened and why is he in pain? _Blaise mentally frowned._ If this bastard of his uncle did something then I'm gonna make him wish that he'd never been born!_

Behind them Severus raised an eyebrow and Minerva looked on, clearly confused. The behavior of both teenagers was strange, especially after Minerva told them that she had seen Blaise and Harry kissing. She felt Severus step up to her back, whispering.

"Look beyond the masks, facades and tricks. Look into their souls and you will find something entirely different than hate there." And she looked, looked and saw beyond the conventional appearances, as they argued with Albus, seemingly angry and hateful towards each other. Concern, love and pain seemed to be barely contained, flames of passion burning in their eyes. If she hadn't looked for it, Minerva wouldn't have seen it, for it was hidden behind layers of facades and masks. Minerva nodded to him, telling him, that she finally saw, too. Pride filled him as he saw their cunning tricking everyone, who didn't know the truth.

"Children, children! There is no need for this. Minerva remembers the incident." Albus looked at her for confirmation.

"Yes, I saw you two meeting," fear flashed for a millisecond in their eyes. "and I saw everything." The protests and denial struck abruptly in their throats. A glance passed between them, seemingly saying everything without the use of words. In this one second a decision was made, a decision that would alter the lives of those involved irrevocably, truthfully.

But truth, as the saying goes, was a double-edged sword, a terrible thing, both real and also painful. The consequences of their actions would be unpredictable and they wouldn't be able to change them.

But you couldn't be always standing on the edge, not knowing if you would fall or not. This was the fate of those who remained neutral, or tried to at least. They would be pulled by others towards the right or the left but it wouldn't matter. It would always mean going down, the difference being that on one side, you would have a security net. You would fall down, yes. Maybe you'd even injure yourself somewhat but you'd still be alive and would step on the ground. There you'd recognize that there wasn't any edge to jump from and you would laugh tears, cry laughter and sob with relieve for you weren't on that edge anymore. You couldn't fall down. In the end you would pity those who still walked on the edge, still had to do this leap of faith.

Then there were those who fell to the other side, floating in mid-air and fearing that they would some time plummet to their death. For even those who tried to float up, to fall down the other side this time and succeeded, would still fell the pull of their first fall.

In this one moment they decided that it was worth jumping, worth doing this leap of faith, faith in those, who waited on the other side for them. And with that Blaise Zabini and Harry Potter jumped.

* * *

One single look of understanding, of relieve passed between their eyes before they let the masks down, all of them. And in front of those, who were in the infirmary, they walked towards each other, their eyes locked, their stride precise and urgent.

This time the passion, the love and the concern broke free from their confines, mixing and exploding in one desperate kiss. They were like two fallen angels, their black cloaks embracing them like wings, hands caressing black hair, bodies pressed together, desperate to get nearer, to feel more, their lips crushing and their tongues dueling. The magic built around them, swirling around the pair like flames.

Severus Snape stared at them. Such a powerful sight it was. He felt their power, their magic, their love, their passion and it overwhelmed him in its brilliance. The potions master turned to look at his fellow professors. They, like him, had wonder written over their faces. Albus' eyes twinkled like the brightest of stars and Minerva had a small smile on her lips. His gaze settled on the pair again and for the first time in years Severus Snape smiled.

* * *

A shadowy figure smiled as he looked up. Such a power, such emotions. They deserved it. They deserved happiness and someday soon he would be able to return, to claim his son as his.

His heart filled with love as he thought about the future. Ro was right. Sometimes it was worth jumping.

* * *

Many miles away a cruel man sneered and beat the caged soul down. It had been many years since he heard that despicable song, felt that hated power. This dark, clean and unique power. The last one had been _him_. He, who dared to lock him up for so long. Someone was out there and he didn't doubt that he was the one who searched for the keys to open the portal to _them._ The ones who had the power to defeat him. The last ones of the Darkened. The last ones of _them._

He growled as the one who was caged filled with hope, as he recognized the power at last. But this wouldn't defeat him this time. Oh no, he wouldn't allow it.

* * *

They slowly separated with her leaning backwards and him embracing her. The corners of their lips were turned a little upwards, the barest of smiles lighting up their faces. Then, Blaise turned her head and glared.

"Why the hell are you in the hospital wing, again?" she asked accusingly. The young lady stepped away from him, crossed her arms in front of her chest and raised an eyebrow. Behind them, the teachers came out of their shock and watches amused as the spectacle progressed.

Harry inwardly winced. He had to stick to the story he told Dumbledore and Blaise wouldn't believe him. Shit.

"I've gotten into a fight with some street kids. Got a bit violent…" The look she gave him told the young Slytherin everything he needed to know and he sighed, resigning himself to the unavoidable.

"Are you kidding me?" Her voice was throughout sarcastic. "As if some little kids, who think they're cool with their knives and those ridiculous clothes, that almost fall off of them, could beat _you _up. I'm not even speaking about them getting _you _into the hospital wing." She paused, concern flashing in her eyes and setting the guilt into him. "So what the bloody hell happened?"

"You know that it had to be done…" He flinched as her eyes dawned with understanding. Blue eyes widened, anger flashing in them.

"You didn't…Fuck it, Des! Where did this Gryffindor idiocy suddenly come from? You know what could've happened! You….you imbecile! What.." her ranting stopped when he caught her lips in a placating kiss.

"I'm sorry, but you know as well as I do that it had to be done." She hugged him fiercely, the emotions of this gesture almost touchable, when a soft cough interrupted them. The headmaster's eyes twinkled like never before, a small happy smile on his face.

"I think that we have something to discuss."

Harry nodded as he put an arm around Blaise, who still didn't seem happy with him. He looked at his professors. These were the people he trusted most in his life. It would be alright to tell them.

"As you wish. Although, the infirmary is probably not the best place for such a discussion. I know a better one." He walked out of the hospital wing with Blaise on his arm. The teachers followed.

* * *

As they followed the pair, they walked further and further into the dungeons. So far, that even the potions master didn't really know where they were. Endless corridors and turns later they came to stop in front of a wooden door.

Harry hissed something and pressed his hand to the door. A green snake appeared on it. On their right a hiss was heard. They turned to see the previously normal wall sliding back and revealing a dark corridor, seemingly endless in its descend downwards. There was no hesitation as the pair began to walk down, their teachers a little nervous but nonetheless following.

Minutes later they came to another door, decorated with tiny snakes and an inscription in Latin engraved in it. _Hope for the lost. Strength for the forsaken._

With a quiet hiss the door opened. Shadows moved around the room, as soft light from the various torches and the fireplace illuminated the walls. It was a big room with mahogany furniture, decorated in silver and green. The family crest of Slytherin hung on the walls, weapons and paintings lining them. On the far side of the room was a family tree.

Everyone seated themselves, the professors with curious looks on their faces. Finally, after a prolonged period of silence, Albus began to speak.

"Interesting room you have here, Harry. I've certainly never been here." The unasked question wasn't missed by anyone. Harry smirked lightly, clearly a bit satisfied to have one up on the illusive headmaster.

"It's no wonder, really. You wouldn't, _couldn't,_ have actually." He didn't say anything else. "What do you want to know?" The question seemed to be said in a resigned tone. He saw the boy steeling himself against everything that would come.

There was a brief moment of silence, when the teachers contemplated the situation. It was the potions master, who spoke first, his silky voice echoing loudly in the room.

"How is it, Mr. Potter, that you found this so obviously Slytherin room?" Harry raised an eyebrow, clearly hearing what hadn't been said. _How is it that you are in a relationship with my goddaughter and not the moronic Gryffindor Golden Boy everyone thought you were?_

"Did you hear of the Darkened?" he asked instead of answering. This question would be answered in a little while. Albus frowned, while the other two only looked confused.

"It was an ancient order, if my memory serves me well. The history of them is extremely fuzzy as the Darkened liked to shroud everything in secrecy and fog. There were rumors about them being very powerful and dangerous. They preferred the darkness of night and delved into the Dark Arts." The headmaster said as an explanation, a nagging feeling in the back of his mind, telling him that he would be told something he had not expected this evening.

Harry nodded. "You are right, for the most part. At that time, there wasn't a ministry to control the wizarding population. Mostly, the power laid with the lords of the areas. The Darkened delved into the Dark Arts but at this time, people weren't hypocritical enough to think that dark equaled evil. Something our society sadly does. The Darkened were the hidden protectors of the wizarding world, saving the day but remaining in the shadows." He smiled a soft smile, a far away look in his eyes, while Blaise only stroked his chest, her head lying on his shoulder and smiling contently. "Not many people know that the founders of Hogwarts were members of the Darkened." Surprise and shock flickered across their faces. They clearly weren't expecting something like this. He raised his hands, stopping the questions that would have been asked otherwise.

"Wait. Let me explain to the end. It is…hard enough to tell you this after so many years of silence. I do not think that I could be able to repeat it again." He swallowed heavily, his face falling into an impassive mask again. Albus' eyes dimmed and even Severus' scowl didn't seem as menacing as before. Blaise squeezed his hand, giving him reassurance.

"Salazar Slytherin was obviously one of the most powerful Darkened in the history of the order." He smiled. "Together the order saved many people. They were fighting against those, who were truly evil, not dark. For it is always our actions, that define us. That had been the code of the Darkened. Unfortunately, there was one foe that they had problems defeating." His gaze turned dark. "Salazar's brother, Silton, was possessed by this evil, too weak to withstand it, lured into hate by this demon and condemned to live an existence in misery." He shook his head, clearing his thoughts. "They fought Silton for many, many years, but were unable to defeat this demon. But then, one day, they decided to risk everything."

He met the eyes of those present evenly, conveying the seriousness of the situation to them.

"They decided on a ritual. One of the most dangerous in existence. It demanded a sacrifice. They poured all of their magic into their items, chosen to bind Silton into a cage, a demon realm, where he would suffer forever for his crimes, whereas the founders would be captured between the realms, on a plane of existence, that is between worlds. It worked. They bound him but they themselves were captured for eternity in this realm." He paused, taking in the various reactions from those around him.

Disbelief was written all over their faces. He knew that the story sounded fantastic, even unbelievable. In the end, it didn't matter. They would believe him eventually. Blaise's soft voice continued the story, knowing how hard it really was for him to speak about it.

"This was the time when the animosity between the houses began. Some years after the founders' sacrifice, the rumors about Salazar started. He had made a lot of enemies in his years as Darkened and now that he wasn't there to defend himself, his foes spread the rumors, making him out to be a Dark Lord. As time went on many believed them, even the Slytherins, who thought that they had to do their founder proud, not knowing that he'd never wanted muggleborns to be prosecuted." She sighed quietly, sadness lingering in her voice.

The professors looked puzzled, not really knowing what to say to this story, that changed everything.

"But how do you know these details, this story, Blaise?" Severus' soft voice penetrated the silence, speaking so unlike himself. He had always been close to his goddaughter, whereas her real parents didn't even care for her. Pureblood mania and status fanaticism where clearly dominating the minds of the rest of her family. As a child, Blaise had often been with him, finding her love for potions and books in this quiet time, that was too short. She was like a daughter to him and seeing her lying there beside the boy he thought he hated, completely overcome with sadness, wasn't something he liked.

It was Harry that answered him, his voice serene and calm.

"Do you remember, Professor Dumbledore, that time in your office, when you told me that it is our decisions that make us into who we are, that it was my choice that had the sorting hat place me into Gryffindor." He met the eyes of his professor, emerald crystals eerily sparkling in the dim light. "You were, of course, right. But you forgot something. You told me that only a true Gryffindor could take the sword of Godric Gryffindor out of the sorting hat." He reached into his robes, pulling the magnificent sword of Salazar Slytherin out, the metal making a soft sound in the now completely noiseless room. "I asked myself after our meeting, how I was able to get this sword to aid me. The sword of Salazar Slytherin, when you told me that only a true member of Gryffindor could pull his sword out, then why did Gryffindor's sword leave me and why did I get this?" The name of the founder glinted powerfully on the sword, the beauty of the craftsmanship not lost on anyone.

"And to what conclusion did you come?" the headmaster asked, partly knowing where his pupil was getting to.

"Tom Riddle told me once that we were similar, so similar that it was downright frightening." He smiled amused at the shivers that cursed through Minerva. "Disconcerting, isn't it? He was, of course, right, even though I didn't really want to see it at that time. You forgot that even if we choose, we will never forget our past, our experiences, our motivations. So even if I chose Gryffindor over Slytherin at that time, it didn't make me any less one of them. In a different house, yes. In the shadows, yes. No one else knowing about it, yes. But I was still one of them." He paused briefly, wondering how they would take the next part.

"It was after this encounter that I went down to the chamber once more." The sharp glance from Dumbledore didn't escape his notice. "Yes. I went down there and in this moment everything changed." The small smile on his face widened slightly.

"What changed?" the question was asked reluctantly, almost fearfully. The other adults stared expectantly at him, knowing that they would her the most crucial part now.

A voice from behind them made them all jump.

"He met me."

* * *

**Well, the fog is starting to clear, romance is coming and I just love Blaise's attitude! grin So, who do you think is this mysterious person? I know, I'm mean, making such a cliffhanger but there are a lot of hints in the chapters. You should be able to work it out. What do you think?**

**Chi**


	6. Chapter5 Let there be monsters

_**Shadowed Truth**_

_Author's Note:_ English is not my mother tongue so be warned. I don't know where this story is going but I just couldn't not write this. The idea kinda stuck in my head. I don't have a beta reader so bear with me on this account. Well, enough with this. On with the story.

_Disclaimer:_ Harry Potter is not mine. Everything belongs to JKR and I only do this for my enjoyment and not for any profit or money.

_**Chapter 5-**_

_**Let there be monsters**_

His face was not that of a man but a demon, born from evil, defeated once with darkness, contained another time with light. But he was always surviving, thriving on the thought of revenge on those, who wronged him. Many, many mortals had been broken before this demon, either claimed by insanity or by his promises, but all had been doomed to an existence in hell.

"Luciusss, send them to Hogwarts. Let's see how the old fool handles _them._" The demonic voice said. It was a good strategy for the attack would come soon and unexpected.

"As you wish, my Lord." The obedient tone of his servant's voice said. A slow smile spread over the creature's face. Yes, it would happen as he wished. He felt the presence of one of the Darkened at Hogwarts. It would be foolish to pass up such an opportunity.

_And then_, he mused, _all will bow to me and my name will be truly feared. My servants will free me once and for all after they finish collecting those blasted artifacts._ The evil laughter sent shivers through the miserable souls, who didn't even know what evil they had set free.

* * *

_He met me._

The words resonated loudly in the now deadly silence. If the situation had not been so serious, he would have found it extremely amusing. With an elegant step, he came into the light, giving the five people before him the first opportunity to see him clearly. He had high cheekbones, aristocratic and sharp features and piercing green eyes, who were like emeralds, shining with their intelligence and cleverness. Black, raven hair fell into his face, giving him a darker and more sinister appearance. The robes he wore were made of the finest silk, darker than night, and adorned with silver lining, faint runes running along it, if one cared to look closely. He looked, in the simplest of terms, striking. His whole being, his whole presence was overwhelming, magic flowing off him.

If that hadn't shocked the professors into silence, then the identity of this mysterious person would certainly have done it, did it, actually.

Harry stood up smiling, his whole face radiating joy and not trying to hide behind his mask, as he walked with a certain urgency to this newcomer. He ignored the shocked looks of his teachers or the disbelief written across their faces. It didn't matter anymore, really, for the only person who cared was here.

The newcomer opened his arms and welcomed the young man into them, hugging him with visible love and concern.

"I haven't seen you for so long. Are you alright?" the smooth, dark voice asked, concern shining in the striking green eyes.

Harry nodded. "As alright as I might ever be. I hope you don't mind them being here. It really couldn't be avoided…I…" But the man only smiled, not in the least angered by the situation.

He shook his head. "Do not concern yourself with that. I knew a long time ago that it couldn't be avoided, that there would be a time, when it all came out." The man turned to Blaise, smiling even more. With an elegant movement he took her hand and kissed it, his eyes twinkling mischievously.

"Hello, my dear. I must say that you look simply breathtaking today. He didn't make you too many problems, did he?" He smirked as they both exchanged a knowing glance, clearly mocking Harry.

The object of their discussion snorted and smirked.

"Of course, I did. I am, after all, the son of my father." Nobody beside the three of them understood the veiled insult and compliment.

"Touché, my little serpent." He smirked at the glare the young man shot him, clearly against the little remark, although one could see the corners of his lips turning upwards.

They seated themselves again, Harry on the right side of the man and Blaise at his side, so that Harry was in the middle. The shock seemed to have left them. Well, mostly. One could still see the surprise in the eyes of the professors, although the twinkle in Dumbledore's overwhelmed everything else.

The voice of the old headmaster was the first to break the silence, that ensured after the seating.

"Am I right in my assumption that you should be quite dead, Lord Slytherin?"

Salazar Slytherin, Darkened, Hogwart's Founder, smirked.

"Why, my dear headmaster, I'm perfectly alive."

* * *

He ran as fast as he could, panting, falling, but nevertheless continuing to run, for he knew that this was his only chance, his only hope to survive. He had been on important ministry business in Hogsmeade. Everything had been going so well, when _they _came. 

He dogged a tree and ran further, hoping against hope that he would succeed, although deep down he knew that he wouldn't come out of this situation alive.

_Forgive me, mother, father. Forgive me._

A single, dying scream filled the air, resonating even minutes later through the shadows of the forest.

It would be a few days after this incident that a resident of Hogsmeade would find the mangled and bloody body of one Percival Weasley, ripped apart, in the forest between Hogwarts and Hogsmeade, his eyes still open in horror.

* * *

_"Why, my dear headmaster, I'm perfectly alive."_

Minerva McGonagall couldn't believe it. In front of her sat one of the Hogwart's Four, seemingly healthy and alive.

"How is it, that you are not dead, Lord Slytherin? And how do you know Harry here?" the headmaster asked.

Slytherin sighed and rubbed his forehead, sighing.

"It is a long story but I will nevertheless tell it. I will tell you how Harry Potter came to be Descardes Slytherin, my son."

_**

* * *

**The young boy sighed. They had been searching for the information on Nicholas Flamel for days now and still couldn't find anything, that would help them in their progress. In the background he heard the quarrel between his friends. It was really annoying, when they did that. He sighed again. They may have been annoying but they were his first real friends and he wouldn't endanger that, if he could help it. _

_Harry began to search again, when something caught his eye. It was as if he was drawn to this book, unable to resist it. With hesitant fingers he pulled it out, blowing away the dust that had gathered over the hundreds of years in which nobody had touched it. Elegant green letters adored the front of the book._

_**The Darkened- Knowledge of the Forgotten**_

_He shivered and opened it, not knowing that this action would destroy the prejudices that the world wanted to set upon him._

_

* * *

_

_**T**he windows of the little room at No. 4 Privet Drive were barred. A soft hoot came from behind him. His loyal owl Hedwig was giving him a concerned look. She was the only one, who knew the truth about what he had learned and what he did at night._

_He grinned at Hedwig, while waving his hand. The bars drew apart and provided a big enough opening for him to fit._

_"Up to some flying?" he asked and heaved himself out of the window and onto the roof. The moonlight shone down on him, caressing him with its rays. The young boy breathed a sigh of relieve. It was beautiful up here. The stars shone brightly and the moon illuminated everything in a mysterious light._

_With feather light steps he began to run to the edge, jumped into the air and felt for the first time since he came back the glorious feeling of being free._

_He remembered clearly the book that changed his life. The Darkened were an order of peace, even if they practiced the Dark Arts. Their history was truly astounding and nothing like the wizarding world believed. Only those worthy enough could have seen the book, hidden for the new generation of Darkened to read. The words of the introduction would be engraved forever in his mind._

_This is a guide to the Hidden Arts of the Darkened. Those, who hide, who learn, who protect. You have been deemed worthy to receive this knowledge, as you have not only Light but also Darkness in your soul. The Darkened are the Shadows, the Assassins, the Protectors of the world, for we give the Lost hope and the Forsaken strength. We do not fight for glory but for safety. There is no dark or light, only intentions and consequences._

_The knowledge he gained from this book was simply astounding. He was only a beginner in the Arts of the Darkened but there would be a time, when he would master them for he knew that he would need them when the moment came to face Voldemort another time._

"He learned the Arts of the Darkened, no longer guided by the prejudices of others. The day after he fought my false heir, Tom Riddle, he came back to the chamber. Through the knowledge he had gained from the book, he could identify the energy that was the portal to the realm I and my fellow founders were caged in." He smiled slightly, looking lovingly at his son." It was then that he crossed over to us. While we couldn't go back to this realm, he could come to ours. We took him in and he learned from us. I made him my heir and son through a blood binding ritual, soon after we met."

**_

* * *

_**

_**A**n inner shudder went through Harry, although his face was carefully blank. He had learned many things, got many things, while being here, but now he was going to have something, that he had wished for his whole life. A family. A family not only in name, but also in blood, spirit and magic._

_"Are you ready?" the voice of his soon-to-be father whispered in his ear. Green eyes met green. Trust flashed between them, voicing the unspoken confirmation._

_The moon shone softly on the group of five, gathered together on a big clearing of a forest. The silk, black trousers shifted comfortably, as he kneeled in the middle of the pentagram. Soft chanting grew louder, the energies gathered and the shadows moved._

_This were his last minutes as a Potter, a real Potter and he smiled at that thought. It wasn't that he wouldn't have loved James Potter, but more because the name Potter was looked upon as savior, light and good. Too many expectations were tied to it, pressing him down. He would be free now, even if nobody knew._

_The powerful voice of Rowena Ravenclaw resonated through the forest._

_"The Darkened have gathered and chosen. A new life will be reborn to the Hidden. May the Knowledge of the Raven aid you in your quest!" A blue light swirled around her, shooting into him, filling him with energy. His head jerked towards the sky, gazing into the moon and trying to forget the pain._

_"The Darkened have gathered and chosen. A new life will be reborn to the Hidden. May the Strength of the Griffin protect you in your quest!" Godric Gryffindor's voice called, strong and deep. His blue eyes twinkled, a small smile on his lips. Red energy shot through Harry. The pain doubled._

_"The Darkened have gathered and chosen. A new life will be reborn to the Hidden. May the Health of the Badger heal you in your quest!" The feminine voice chanted. Her straight blonde hair moved strangely in the windless night, golden light gathering around her and finally entering him. His arms were now nearly touching the ground, his chest pointing to the stars and his head pressed back._

_"The Darkened have gathered and chosen. A new life will be reborn to the Hidden. By the blood of Slytherin, by the magic of the Shadows, by the spirit of the Snake, I hereby lay my claim on this life! May the Magic hear my claim! May the Mask of the Snake empower you in your quest!" The magic built up, barely contained. "Let this life be reborn to the Hidden! Let the Shadows be witness to the rebirth of Descardes Slytherin!" Salazar shouted and the silver-green energy flew into him. The pain overwhelmed him, redefining him into something new. The moon shone brightly and he screamed._

_

* * *

_

"We discovered soon that Voldemort, or Tom Riddle, has been possessed by the same demon as my brother Silton. I believe that young Tom Riddle found a rest of the energy we made the cage for this demon from and fell into the demon's grasp." Salazar sighed deeply. Another innocent soul had been seduced by this monster. A soft squeeze came from his right and he couldn't help but smile at his son.

"That's why Tom wants to find the artifacts." He was almost interrupted by the surprised exclamations of his professors, clearly wondering how he knew. "The artifacts are the only things that hold him in that realm. I search for them, too. You must understand that father," Des motioned to Salazar," and the other founders can only be freed if we find the artifacts. After they cross into this realm, they can reclaim the energy they gave to the artifacts and seal the gate forever." He looked seriously at his mentors. "It is the only chance we've got to defeat Voldemort once and for all."

They were silent for a few moments, not really knowing what could be said in such a situation, when Salazar suddenly groaned.

"I can't hold the connection any longer. Sorry. May the shadows protect you." He disintegrated into air. The teachers looked alarmed.

"What was that, Mr. Potter?" Minerva asked. "Why did he disintegrate?"

Des shook his head, sadly. " He is, unfortunately, not able to keep the connection to this realm of existence for long. The fact that these are the private chambers of the Slytherin family in Hogwarts are probably one of the things, why he could have held that connection this long. It's very taxing and until I gather the other artifacts, I won't be able to free them."

He stood up, offering Blaise his hand, as he did so.

"It has been a busy and tiring day. Maybe we should rest a little and speak about everything else tomorrow morning. You have got a lot of information to assimilate." They slowly left the chambers, beginning the ascending. "Oh, and please call me Des, when in private." He smiled at them.

Blaise smirked.

"I always knew that you didn't like being called Harry. Too common for the savior of the wizarding world, wouldn't you say, Des?" He rolled his eyes at her teasing.

"You wouldn't want it any other way, my love." He smirked back but raised an eyebrow as he heard a growl behind them.

"I think we will need to have a chat about what exactly you are doing to my goddaughter, Mr. Slytherin." The voice of his potions master stated in a dangerous growl.

Des groaned. "Why exactly am I putting myself through this?" he muttered.

"Why, because you love me, of course!" Blaise exclaimed happily. Albus and Minerva exchanged a glance and chuckled as they heard the quiet Love takes away any Slytherin self-preservation I had. from Des and saw the satisfied smirk of Blaise.

Tomorrow would be a long day

_

* * *

**Well, here's the new part. Hope you enjoyed it. I think that I gave a lot of hints. You were right, skittles. It is Salazar. I like his character and the story is also beginning to clear. When I'm done with this story, which will not be for a while, I'll probably write exactly how or why Harry went to this other realm and the whole story of him and the founders, as well as Silton. What do you think?**_

**_Chi_**


	7. Chapter6 Into the Past

_**Shadowed Truth**_

_Author's Note:_ English is not my mother tongue so be warned. I don't know where this story is going but I just couldn't not write this. The idea kinda stuck in my head. I don't have a beta reader so bear with me on this account. Well, enough with this. On with the story.

_Disclaimer:_ Harry Potter is not mine. Everything belongs to JKR and I only do this for my enjoyment and not for any profit or money.

**_Chapter 6-_**

_**Into the Past**_

It was silent, the cozy living room of Albus Dumbledore only illuminated by the low burning fire. Fawkes chirped gently, breaking the eerie silence and the thoughts of the room's occupants. It had been barely fifteen minutes since the Slytherin pair bid them their goodnights, walking away with billowing robes.

Minerva snorted, earning her a raised eyebrow from Severus.

"I just wondered whether they learned their love for dramatics from you." Albus chuckled as the potions master sneered, although the usual sharp edge wasn't there.

"And _I _wonder where and how much they learned. Har…, Des", she corrected herself, not quite used to speak or think about him like this," managed to play us for years. I'm his Head of House and I didn't notice anything!" She exclaimed, irritated. That was one of the things, that really got to her. A soft hand stilled her, making Minerva calm down. The soft blue eyes told her that he knew what she felt, the usual twinkle warm and dimmed.

Severus, too, tried to reassure her in his own way. "Nobody knew. Even I, a Slytherin, never suspected. But then, considering who his father is, it's not surprising." She smiled at them, not really placated, but nonetheless happy, that she had such friends. Severus was in many aspects a younger brother or even son to her. It pained both her and Albus when he spied, making them even more attentive and protective towards the young man.

"And that's where everything goes together. Salazar Slytherin. How is it that the whole wizarding world never heard this side of the story. So much pain and sorrow could have been avoided." The Slytherin shook his head, clearly thinking among other things about his fate and later redemption.

"From what I have read and know, the Darkened were a very secretive organization. Considering the fact that nobody knew that the Founders were part of it is prove enough." He became thoughtful." It is not surprising that it was Salazar Slytherin, who Des turned to. He always displayed Slytherin qualities, however covered and protected from prying eyes they may have been. They were always there."

A contemplative silence issued.

"Do you think we can trust him?" asked Minerva, clearly not knowing what to make out of the situation.

"Yes. Harry may not be entirely, what he made us to believe he is but he is nonetheless someone I trust implicitly. If he trusts Salazar Slytherin, and he must have, then I will do too." Fawkes sang a happy note, apparently satisfied with this decision.

"Do you know how Blaise and he met? I never saw them together and they are quite close." A mischievous smile graced the headmaster's face, amused by the scowl of his younger colleague.

Severus shook his head. "She never told me anything and I'm one of the people in her life who she trusts. Her father is a Death Eater and her mother is, unfortunately, not in the position to say anything against that." A pained look crossed his face." I am in many aspects more family than anyone or anything else to her. There is a lot we don't know about what happened and I will certainly try to find out tomorrow."

Albus chuckled. "Don't go too hard on our young friend. He has enough problems to worry about vicious potions masters."

"I will try to be reserved." _Not._ He promised and excused himself.

Both remaining teachers looked after his billowing robes, amused expressions on their faces.

"Poor Des. He's going to battle a raging wolf." Minerva said with a little concern but gave him a questioning look, when he snorted.

"These are Slytherins we're talking about, Minerva. Don't worry about Des. He's more resistant than most, believe me." And she believed him, as she remembered the fierce and cold look down in the chamber, as he fought.

_I hope you know what you do, Severus.

* * *

_

The library was dark, not a single light giving warmth. Cynthia Zabini nee Black sat in the blackest corner of the library, silent tears running down her face. Her husband was at another of his dark revels. A shudder went through her as she thought about it. These were the only nights, that she could let down her masks and worry for her daughter. Blaise was a formidable young woman but she had never trusted Cynthia. Disappearing frequently from their manor, saying that she had been with friends, or simply starring out of the window, when she thought that nobody saw her. Now, her husband wanted to present their child to the Dark Lord and make her one of His followers. Her crying intensified. She remembered very well what had happened to her sister Bellatrix. In her youth, her sister had been quite loving and now she was a crazy, manipulating bitch, that would even rip her heart out for her Lord.

"Whatever am I to do with you, Blaise?" she whispered into the still room, her whisper echoing throughout the whole place and reminding her of the hollow emptiness in herself. Blaise was at Hogwarts right now. Her godfather was the only one she really trusted. Cynthia remembered clearly the affection and love, that were covered quickly, every time she saw Severus and secretly yearned for this love. Making Severus Snape Blaise's godfather was one of the few right things, she had ever done since school. Severus Snape. She sighed quietly. She remembered him well, very well and smiled in remembrance of what has once been. Leaving him and conceding to her parents' wishes was one thing she would never forgive herself for. She only hoped her daughter did not make the same mistake she had once made.

A nearly forgotten memory came to the forefront of her mind. It had been two years ago, since she first gained knowledge of her daughter's secret.

_The wind rustled the leaves. It was a warm summer night with the moon shining bright and clear, the stars twinkling. But somehow Cynthia still felt restless. She often had the urge to escape her confines and the oppressing feeling, that she got while inside the manor. It stood for everything that she wanted to forget. A sound not far away, coming from a sheltered clearing, alerted her. With a quick notice-me-not and concealment charm, she slowly made her way in that direction. For a moment she was shocked, thinking it was a Death Eater, but then, she relaxed. Her daughter was standing in the arms of a man, probably young, as she couldn't clearly see his features. His black and emerald cloak reflected and absorbed the moonlight at the same time. With his arms safely holding her daughter and her open and loving expression, she concluded that this must be the one she loved. Of course, she had often thought about the possible romantic relationships that her daughter might have had but she never seriously considered that she might be in such a relationship._

_"You shouldn't have come." Her daughter's voice said softly, reprimanding him but also thanking him, that he was there._

_"I couldn't stay away." The stranger's voice was a soft, deep echo of the night. "You know that." She could hear the smile in it._

_Blaise gave him a sly look. "Your family has always been affected by dark haired women." She smirked as he drew her closer._

_"And I do not regret my weakness." He kissed her under the moonlight, passion flowing freely in the protection the shadows gave them._

_With a whispered goodbye he faded into the darkness of the forest._

She only hoped that he would protect her.

* * *

"So, what's up with Des?" a deep concerned voice asked. Godric Gryffindor had grown fond of the young man, after he arrived in their realm. While courageous and strong, the cunning of Descardes Slytherin was even greater. Their relationship was one of favorite uncle and nephew, both had grown very close to each other during Des' stay.

Salazar looked at his friend, standing tall with his blonde-red hair falling into his eyes and concerned expression.

"He finally told them. I think that he was really concerned about their reactions, particularly because he's my son. You know how this time's people think about me." They both grimaced. "But I think that everything's going to be Ok. Albus Dumbledore is a wise and good man. I see why Des looks up to him as a grandfather. He loves him."

The slight pause in his words told Godric everything he needed to know.

"Don't worry, Sal. You're his father and he loves you dearly. Just because he sees another as a grandfather does not mean that he doesn't love you." A grateful smile was the answer to this statement.

Moments later, two tall and graceful women strode into the room. One had beautiful, black hair, which was cascading down her back. She had striking grey eyes and elven features, almost glowing with beauty. Some might have mistaken her for a veela, had they seen her. The other, while not less beautiful, had short blonde, straight hair and soft, warm features. Whereas the dark haired woman was unmistakably striking, this woman was beautiful in her own way.

"Hello, Sal." The grey eyes danced with a strange, unrecognizable feeling, before shielding themselves.

"Rowena." A single world was enough for the world to dissolve around them, leaving the two Founders staring at each other. With a smile he took her hand and kissed it softly, barely touching her skin.

Behind their backs, Godric and Helga shared an amused look. Their friends could get sometimes like this, forgetting everything around them.

"It's wonderful to see you again, Sal." Helga greeted. At once, the moment dissolved. Sal turned to them.

"Des is ok. I saw Blaise, too. He finally told them and they seem to take it well." He offered them a smile.

"Oh! So our little boy is finally growing up!" Helga exclaimed happily, clearly teasing him.

"He has always shown the uttermost elegance, worthy of the Slytherin name!" Salazar defended, knowing that she wanted to rile him up but not really caring.

The others chuckled. It was good to see their friend this proud and happy. Many years he wallowed in self-disgust for the family he had. It was a wonder, a miracle, when Des finally stumbled into their realm. They were so alike, both proud and with a burden too heavy for a single person to carry.

But Rowena quickly sobered. They had a lot to talk about.

"We have a problem, my friends. A very big problem."

* * *

Fresh bread, vegetables, scrambled eggs and delicious sausages. He absolutely loved eating at Hogwarts. But then, everything was better than what his Aunt Petunia had given him, when he had been a child. He put a piece of sausage in his mouth and sighed in delight.

Blaise shot him an amused look.

"What? I really love the food here!" he defended himself and bit into another piece of sausage. Clothed into elegant Slytherin styled robes, he gave an amazing picture of royalty, so different from the shy Gryffindor boy everyone thought he was.

Albus cleared his throat. As amusing as the whole conversation was, the teachers wanted an explanation for the events that had happened.

"As delicious as the breakfast might have been, we have much to discuss." Des sighed, but rose, holding out a hand to his female companion. He turned to the teachers, his eyes resigned and guarded, although nonetheless willing to tell them his story.

"It will probably be better if we go to your office for this discussion. It does not seem prudent to talk about something like this in the Great Hall."

The walk to the office was a silent affair for Des and Blaise didn't really want to say anything, while the teachers were too deep in their own thoughts.

The party seated itself. An uncomfortable moment later it was Des, who began to speak. His back straightened, his face closed itself off into neutral politeness and his robes shifted in simple elegance, befitting the status of the son of Salazar Slytherin.

"The essentials have been told yesterday. Maybe you should begin with questions and we will answer."

The potions master regarded them silently for a few seconds, before beginning.

"How did you two meet and what are your intentions towards my goddaughter?" His voice was slightly threatening, although it was said in a rather pleasant tone. Des' green eyes flashed, determination entering them.

"I've known her since first year, although we didn't meet publicly. I wasn't the only one, who stumbled into the Founder's Realm. Let's just say, that I gave no hints pertaining to my views about certain things, like the house rivalry. As for my intentions." Power seeped through his shields, giving him an eerie appearance. His green eyes glowed and the signet ring of Slytherin, that proclaimed him the heir of this house and was normally not seen on his finger, glittered in the soft sunlight. "I, Descardes Aryton Slytherin, swear on my soul and my magic, that I would die for her and those she considers family." The magic shifted, welcoming the vow and securing it in his magic.

Wide eyes met this promise, whereas Severus Snape's had something like acceptance and pride in them. "I, Severus Salazar Snape, recognize the vow of Descardes Aryton Slytherin and welcome him to my House." The magic shifted again, acknowledging the truce of both men and their houses.

This was not James Potter. He had recognized that. In this young man before him was nothing, that could be compared to the arrogant Gryffindor he had known. He would protect Blaise, who he thought of as his daughter, no matter the cost and for that he could respect Descardes Slytherin.

"Let this mark a new beginning between the both of us. I am not James Potter and I never wanted to be. I do not know why he did those terrible deeds and I apologize for those of my House, who wronged you. May the Darkened acknowledge my sincerity." The shadows darkened for a few moments, before returning to their original form.

Both Slytherins clasped their hands together, sealing their alliance. Clapping was heard behind them. They had obviously forgotten all about the others. Albus' eyes twinkled furiously, while Minerva smiled slightly and Blaise had tears shining in her eyes. With a few quick movements she threw herself at her godfather and hugged the life out of him.

"Oh, thank you! Thank you! Thank you! You're the best godfather in the world, Sev!" In a rare moment of emotion, he hugged her back, relishing in the knowledge, that he had made her this happy.

"Well, of course I am." He snidely replied, laughing loudly as she hit him on his arm. "But you still have many questions to answer."

* * *

"…So you see, that it is imperative to get the artifacts. I already have Slytherin's ring and Ravenclaw's dagger. I need to find Hufflepuff's shield and Gryffindor's amulet."

Blaise's angry voice cut through his explanation. "Don't tell me, that you went out there alone! I've told you countless times that it would be too dangerous! No wonder, that you were in the hospital wing, when I arrived! Beaten up by some street kids. My ass! You fucking went into the bloody vampire lair alone!" She whispered at him, nonetheless furious. It was when she whispered, that she was the most furious. Des sighed. He had hoped, that she had forgotten this particular fact but no such luck. It seemed, that he was really going to get it this time.

"You knew that we had to get the dagger. You knew that we had to go, one way or the other. I went last night. No matter when, it would have been dangerous all the same. Please don't blame me for what I had to do."

"But you said, that you would wait for me! You…How could you! You should have waited for me and we would have gone together!" She embraced him tightly, not wanting to let go.

"Excuse me, but what happened?" the headmaster softly asked.

"He did something stupid. As always." She glared at Des. "He just went into a bloody vampire lair. But not just any vampire lair. He went into the lair of the Morgans!"

Minerva gasped, Albus' eyes widened and Severus blanched.

"He WHAT!"

But before anybody could say anything else, the door banged open and Kingsley Shackelbolt ran in, panting.

"We have a problem. Percy Weasley has been found dead in the forbidden forest."

* * *

**Not a big chapter but I've been pretty busy lately. What with school and everything. I'll try to post more often. Not much action in this one, but it's going to get really interesting in the next chapters. So, any guesses?**

**Chi**


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